All I Have
by Celia Foster
Summary: They are impossibly different, but sometimes even the most polar of opposites can attract under the right conditions. A DarkxZelda fanfiction placed somewhere after the events of Ocarina of Time.
1. Chapter 1: The Beginning

Chapter 1: The Beginning

She ran by him in the hall and he stopped in his tracks. Her bronze-colored hair whipped by and he caught the scent of rain. Dark blinked several times and clung to the darkness, trying to remember her name.

"Zelda…" It came out of the depths of his brain, the name of the princess, whose mother he had been stalking. Nothing out of the ordinary for the shadow, considering he had been sabotaging and assassinating those in wealthy positions for months. All he wanted was to wreak as much havoc to Hyrule as he could, and if he had to play dirty to accomplish that, then he would. He simply had to melt into the shadows, no matter their size, to steal himself from searching eyes. He planned to kill the mother, but the daughter… He would not touch her. He COULD NOT touch her.

She was different.

Deep down in his rotted heart, he knew he was afraid of her power. The princess was so full of light, and so much insight, what with her prophetic dreams and connection to the deities and such. She was like a pure wind that blows before rain, free and beautiful in so many ways, with the ability to move and change her surroundings…

Dark shook the musings from his mind. "Since when did you become a poet?" He thought, ever the cynic. There was no reason for her to mean anything at all besides an obstacle to conquer.

o.o.o.o.o

After moving shadow by shadow down the hall, Dark arrived at the throne room. The room where the queen sat high and mighty in her glorious perch, with her crown of gold and jewels and clothing of silk, velvet, and fur. What right did any family have to rule over all others? Thousands of generations ago, this family took the title of royalty, and why? Why did any family get to decide what all the rest should do?

"That's why I'm here," Dark thought. To rid the world of this ruler, however benevolent, would cause the anarchy to begin. Chaos will reign, people will die, and the buildings will fall… It will be beautiful. He permitted a malicious smile to dance over his lips as he prepared to enter the room in the most discreet way possible.

Just then a hand appeared on his shoulder. That shoulder felt like it was burning, and angry, he turned to see whoever it was, only to come face to face with the princess. He sucked in his breath through his teeth, beyond aggravated.

"What do you want, girl? Tell me before I hurt you!" Not his best threat, but he was under pressure. Literally. For some reason he felt the need to whisper. He unsheathed his black sword with satisfactory stealth.

"You will not hurt me, Dark Link." She smiled at him. "So please do not hurt my mother. There are so many people who would lament her passing."

Dark was taken aback. Who did she think she was? He scowled. "What makes you think I'll listen to a spoiled child?"

"I am not certain. I just wish to prevent this heinous crime." She grabbed his wrist. She was already 18, but her innocence was astounding. "Tch! Naïve, petty child. I am generations older than her in spirit if not in body, and yet she feels she has authority over me because of some royal title!" Dark thought.

Aloud, he questioned, "How can you detect shadows? What are you?"

"I am… just Zelda." She giggled and the sound sent a shiver up his spine. It grated on his ears like metal scratching metal. How she could manage such a thing as laughter amidst the gravity of this predicament, he didn't know.

Dark was done conversing.

"Unhand me, disgusting child! With one slash of this sword you could have the same fate that your mother will: dying at my feet in a pool of blood!"

Zelda gasped and tightened her grip. "I did not wish to do this, but you leave me no choice." The girl called for guards, who promptly came running. Dark's mind stirred to a frenzy as he tried to blend into the shadows again, but somehow he was unable to while in her hold. The guards arrived, and seeing no escape, he panicked. With a nod from the princess, they moved forward. He hissed at them and screamed when they bound his wrists with metal shackles, resisting with all his might. His work couldn't come to this! He had tried so hard to get this far, and he was so close to his goal but then…

"ZELDA!" Dark shouted her name like a curse, and she just looked at him with sympathy. He didn't want her pity, he wanted her blood.

AN: Hello everyone! After years of silence, I finally decided to come back and submit something I've been working on since I got this account. This fanfiction is near and dear to my heart, and the only one that I continue to be proud of. I'll strive to post a chapter a week, but no promises. It is a complete story though, I'm just going through the process of transferring it from one device to another. Well anyway, I hope you enjoy it! Reviews are nice but not necessary :)


	2. Chapter 2: Intrigue

Chapter 2: Intrigue

The jail cell was quiet save for his deep breathing. Dark Link couldn't sleep in this place, but then again, his slumber was just as sparse in the Water Temple. He could visualize the room he had been trapped in for so long with ease: an endless expanse of deceptive water that looked much deeper than it was. Two doors loomed on either side of a barren tree in the midst of a wasteland of heresy.

The illusion was only to be broken by his death, but who would come to save him from his near unnecessary existence?

Only once was the room freed from the delusion: when the left-handed hero came and killed him, then moved on. To that boy, he was as valuable as a grain of sand stuck in the crevice of his iron boots.

Of course, he was resurrected, he always was.

So when Ganondorf unleashed him into the world, he promised to bring Hyrule down in any way that he could. Even after Ganondorf was banished and Hyrule was attempting to pull itself together again, he was still working, doing what he could to pull it back apart.

"But now look. I'm imprisoned in a cold, dark jail cell with my only visitor being a dim-witted princess. I absolutely loathe this place. At least in the Water Temple I wasn't in chains." Dark mumbled to the musty air. He had tried many a time to escape, but found that whatever enchantments reinforced the cell, they did not allow him to blend into a shadow and slip between the bars. The prospect frustrated him to no end. Would this be his new eternal hell? Surely he could bail himself out in due time. All he needed was to learn a tad more patience.

The soft tip-tap of the princess' footsteps awakened him from his musings.

"Hello, Dark Link." Zelda smiled at him through the bars.

"What do you want?" His tone was bitter.

She just sighed. "Why must you refuse to talk to me? Why do you so dislike the thought of conversing with someone who is just trying to be kind to you?"

"Kindness if foolish. I don't wish to talk, especially not to you. I would rather be alone; that would be beneficial for is both." He replied in a detached sort of way.

"Is it not a pleasant change of pace to have someone to speak with? Do you not grow bored all by your lonesome?" Bronze hair shifted as she cocked her head to the right.

The shadow snorted. "Well, dearest princess, yours truly does not exactly enjoy human interaction, if you have failed to notice thus far." Dark managed a cynical smile as he replied, parodying her politeness.

Why would he want to have conversations with other human beings when they would never understand him?

"My lady, please do not bother—" Zelda cut off her guard with a gracious gloved hand and that was all.

"I understand that you do not enjoy humans. I also understand that you ae inclined to evil-doing because you were magically formed to be so. But I believe that somewhere inside you in a shred of decency, and I intend to find it and nurture it." She ignored his sputtering protests and resolved, "You will be seeing me quite often, my dear shadow. Please let me know when you wish to speak to me." The young princess smiled and turned on her heel to leave.

"Wait." Dark found himself wanting to know, "Why do you care?"

Zelda spun back around to face him through the damned bars of his cell. "I… do not know. Perhaps I am just so naïve to believe that there is good in everyone."

He asked nothing more. There was nothing else to be said.

She left Dark Link in the dungeon to ponder what in Hyrule she had meant.

AN: Aaaaaaaand I'm back with another chapter! I was going to post it next week but I'M JUST SO EXCITED TO POST THIS ARE YOU EXCITED TOO AAAAAAAHHHHH

Okay anyway, I'll just keep posting this and hopefully someone thinks it's interesting xD Reviews are appreciated though not required~


	3. Chapter 3: Darkness

Chapter 3: Darkness

Days turned to weeks, and still Princess Zelda carved out some time to see him on a daily basis. Weeks turned to months, and by some sheer stupidity on his part he began to look forward to her visits. After all, it was the only interesting even that occurred in his day. Zelda was his sole link (pun noted) to the world outside, and he wanted to savor that access to such information rather than exchange it for boredom. While imprisoned in the Water Temple, he did not have the luxury of knowing Hyrule's affairs and goings-on; he was cut off from all civilization. Maybe someday, if he played his cards right, he could convince the princess to let him out. That would be the day.

Or, he could fashion a weapon out of whatever he found in his cell, pick the lock, and kill her and the guard out of spite.

He'd leave that option as a last resort. It was too difficult, and at least here he was fed. Even though he could live for many years without eating, he liked being able to eat on a regular basis, not just when it was absolutely necessary. Dark felt healthier when he wasn't merely surviving.

It had been about 3 months since he'd been thrown in… Or had it been four? The time was lost in its own repetitive cycle. It seemed to him that it was close to nighttime, judging by the meal they had just given him. The soft, light padding down the stairs and toward his cell could be identified as Zelda's by a practiced ear. He noted that the usual clanking, clunking sound of the guard's footfalls were not with her.

"I see that your bodyguard isn't with you this time. What was his name? I can only recall things of worth to me." Dark drawled, his actual level of curiosity low.

"Harold. He permitted me to visit by myself, though he is standing guard atop the stairwell. I managed to remind him of my age and maturity for once." She giggled.

"You? Mature? You're but a child to me." He played the only reliable conversation card he had: sarcasm.

The princess' laugh continued. "I'll have you hanged for such insolence! Straight to the gallows with you, delinquent!"

This was normal behavior, but initially the shadow had assumed that the delicate princess was incapable of humor. She was too proper for such filthy things as common speech. But, he very soon discovered he was utterly misguided in that mindset. It was actually quite refreshing to learn.

"How can you laugh?" Dark wondered aloud. A hateful vision occurred in his mind. The surroundings blurred.

"Elaborate, if you please. I am not sure what you mean."

"You know your family is the reason that Hyrule fell apart, right? One moment changed everything and you did nothing to stop it." Dark felt his consciousness descend and become a part of the evil within. His eyes burned as he looked at her without really seeing, his voice became like hundreds of cracks of thunder trying to speak simultaneously. "Your father thought he was making a deal with a neighboring people for the betterment of his kingdom, but it should have been obvious how dangerous I was. I remember you, a curious, aggravatingly talented little girl, staring at me through the window of your courtyard. It was a brief second, but it was enough. And your fairy boy… I knew you had the potential to destroy my plans." The shadow's body, no longer his by this point, began to emanate a pulsing, dark energy. It floated above the filthy floor like a puppet on too thin of strings. "But you were only children. You had the power, why did you not use it? You had so much to take, why did you not take it? How could you have delayed when the fate of your people was at stake? Because of your oblivious father and your failure to act, I broke the world. I am still here. I am still moving. Do not think me dead. I will always be here. I NEVER LEFT!" The whole chamber filled with the sound of unearthly laughter, and the princess screamed.

Dark gained consciousness as abruptly as he hit the ground. He fell and collapsed on the floor, wheezing as the wind got knocked out of him. Drowsily, he sat up and looked at the girl through half opened eyes.

"Hey…"

Zelda's face was contorted in pain and fear, tears streaming down endlessly like a fountain of sorrow. She was pressed up against the wall, holding herself literally as though she was holding herself together figuratively.

"I know I often strike fear in the hearts of many with my presence, but I honestly thought you were stronger than this, my liege. I am utterly disappointed in your lack of poise." He did his best to recover the situation with a joke, but it did not seem to hold. What had he done this time? He couldn't lose her trust, he hadn't convinced her to let him out yet.

"You… you do not recall what just transpired here?" The princess found her voice at long last.

"I remember having a conversation with you about your bodyguard." He was confused.

"Ah… well… it seems this was all an accident. That could not have been the real you. You were possessed. You are not truly that evil, are you?" She seemed to be pleading his case when he had not been informed of the crime.

"I am at a loss here, princess. I do not know what you are talking about."

"That is alright. I will be taking my leave now. It was… lovely to chat with you again, dear shadow." She straightened herself out, brushed off her dress, and smiled. He simply nodded back.

Her steps faded upward into the grand castle she'd grown up in, a world of royalty that he didn't understand.

He didn't understand HER, even after all this time.

AN: Hellooooo once again. This chapter is an interesting one, considering I had to alter it completely from the original copy. There was a scene about Dark learning how to laugh or something. It was supposed to be funny and a bonding moment for the characters, but it fell flat upon rereading it... and it also didn't really accomplish anything. It just sat there, meaningless and lame.

SO I added demonic possession and foreshadowing! Much more productive!

Do you have any predictions of what's really going on? Write a review and let me know! I won't really answer since I don't want to spoil anything, but I'll reply with a smiley face to show that I saw it and appreciate your enthusiasm xD Think of it as my virtual cookie to you. A gold star that says "ya done good."

Have wonderful lives! Until next time...


	4. Chapter 4: Pain

Chapter 4: Pain

"Cain."

"Oh good, you can see my imaginary inmate too." The princess had spoken the name without warning, and Dark wasn't sure why.

"No, no, I was addressing you. I shan't call you 'Dark Link' forever; you require a name of your own. Thus, I dub thee Cain." Zelda grinned almost in a mischievous way and continued, "What say you? I believe the name is quite fitting to your appearance."

He mused momentarily then responded, "I don't absolutely abhor it, so I might as well accept it. It also rhymes with 'pain', which I am known to inflict."

"Hurrah! I am overjoyed that you accept this name, dear friend!" Zelda ignored his comment on his life before this imprisonment, as if he was never a tool of evil in her eyes.

Her smile was a star in the distant, unreachable sky. As much as he wanted to, he couldn't hate it. It was too beautiful to loathe.

After a bit of silence, Zelda inquired of him slowly, "Have you ever wanted to be someone else? Perhaps just for a mere day, have what they have and live their life?" Her blue eyes stared into his dark ones; those vortexes of color implored an answer. This must have been something that was on her mind quite a lot.

"Not really. I have always been me, and I cannot fathom being anyone else or living any other life than my own." Cain paused and gave the princess a quizzical look. "Why do you wish for another life? You have servants at your beckon-call, a loving family, a grandiose castle with more than enough belongings to call your own… I can't see why you would be unhappy. You have no reason to be. If ever I had the urge to be jealous of someone else's life, it would be of yours."

Zelda seemed keenly interested in the lower hem of her pristine dress that grazed the tips of her feet. "I suppose I do not have much of a reason superficially. But there is some yearning within to have a simpler life, just as my people have. Of course, I am grateful for everything that I've been given and the wonderful family I was born into, but yet I wish for a day when I can roam free, do as I please." Their eyes met once more. "My day is planned for me before I even open my eyes to the dawn, a day filled with lessons, meetings, and work. I am only allowed to visit you because my mother – by her grace – allows the activity, and I must do so by taking time out of my night when I should be sleeping. I envy you, my dear friend. You were free to roam, free to do as you wanted." She sighed, turning away.

In a flash, he was fuming. How dare she! To think he had thought her to be intelligent.

"You insolent child!" Dark stood and rattled his chains and shackles, his pent anger aroused with unprefaced intensity. "Do you hear that, Your Highness? That is the sound of bondage. I was imprisoned in the Water Temple for years, until I was finally set free by the King of Evil whom you call Ganondorf. My days of roaming were few, and I was always running from YOUR soldiers. Do you envy a life of fear, a life of suffering, a life alone? I nearly went insane in that watery hell, but I'VE never wished for any other life. If you truly believe me to be free, then LET ME GO!" He could not hold back his shout of rage, and its sound echoed in the close quarters of the dungeon.

Zelda's eyes spilled over with hurt as she covered her mouth with her hands. "Please forgive me, I…"

Her words trailed off as she sniffed and erected herself, composed once again before he had a chance to blink. She took a deep breath. "I am deeply sorry for your experiences, and I wish I could do something about them. But I put you here in hopes that you would change your evil ways. It seems that is unlikely to happen. I do not have the final word concerning your release, and I will not release you either way. I will be taking my leave now."

"Of course, Your Royal Majesty, whatever you please. Go, enjoy your luxurious life. It most likely doesn't live up to your standards, but it's enough to survive on I'm sure!" Dark gushed sarcasm like a fountain through his diction, watching her walk away as dignified as she knew how. He knew she was still crying, but he had no capacity to care anymore.

o.o.o.o.o

A perplexed Harold made the wise decision not to ask why Zelda was crying when she exited the dungeon. She dismissed him as she escorted herself back to her chambers in her most collected manner.

Zelda threw herself down on the well-kept four-poster bed with silken sheets and allowed herself to breathe. What she had expected to hear by telling him those things, she did not know, but it was not that unfortunate display of wrath. Why must she hurt herself this way? Why must she see him nigh on religiously when he so cutting, so crude, so hateful… even dangerous to her wellbeing at the wrong times? Why must she go to him and find some enjoyment in the conversations when he did not seem to?

Perhaps, the answer did not need to be found. Perhaps she should just wipe her tears and go to sleep, only to appear before him again tomorrow to ponder the same questions all over again.

AN: Another chapter for you to chew on hehehe xD What do you think of our dear shadow's new name? Do you think it suits him? I don't even remember how I came up with it, it just popped up in my head like a voice from heaven, "YOU SHALL NAME HIM CAIN" and I was like "WOW THAT IS A GREAT NAME GOD"

That was a lame joke, I'm sorry that it exists.

Carry on, have a wonderful day and stay tuned for more~


	5. Chapter 5: A Bond

Chapter 5: A Bond

Her floor-reaching gown was a deep ocean blue; the hue reminiscent of Lake Hylia. A silver sash was tied in an elegant knot around her waist, and the square neckline showed no more flesh than her collarbone. The sleeves reached her wrists then tapered off to loop around her middle finger. Golden bronze hair was tied by her left shoulder with a loose silver ribbon, and a thin silver diadem rested atop her hair and forehead. Those eyes stared at him, matching her dress that was common wardrobe to her and extravagant to everyone else. Those eyes bore into his soul without meaning to, and he felt he could not bear the weight of her stare for another minute.

Zelda, in all her beauty, still came to see him the next day after their altercation. Why, he would never understand, but she was here now and he knew that he should give a formal apology for raising his voice at the princess.

But why should he? Cain cared nothing for the girl… He sighed. Even his own thoughts betrayed him.

And yet, he didn't apologize. Cain didn't speak a word, but rather she felt the need to start up the conversation.

"My coronation will occur within the year. My dear mother, our queen, is getting older and there is no one left to rule. I myself have no husband with which to bear a new heir, but my mother said that would be discussed after I am crowned. I am… alone, in a sense." Her quiet, mild voice sounded almost melancholy. He could not fathom what she was thinking right now, but it was obvious that the princess was not feeling as chipper as usual.

"Well, what shall I do about that, Your Highness? I'm in chains; I cannot exactly fix whatever internal turmoil you may be enduring."

"I understand that, I just… wanted to tell you." Zelda let out a strange, cynical laugh while her gaze wandered to the ceiling. "Who am I fooling? I am lonely in a castle full of people, so desperate for friendship that I am reaching out to the prisoner whom I imprisoned. Despite your blatant hatred of me, I come to you as a moth to a flame. Even I do not understand my reasons. Surely I could find friends of better repute than this, but would they be as honest as you? My citizens respect me, as they should, but none would think themselves worthy to be companions of royalty, goodness no! they fail to see how much I am just like them, and still young. So I suppose the only person who could befriend me might be the one who lacks all respect for me as an authority. That would be you, Cain. Perhaps that is another reason that I am here. I cannot be sure of even that." She bowed her head and covered her face with her delicate hands, not crying, but at the same time looked as if she were mourning.

Dark was silent. What was there to say? After too long, he tried to conjure up something, hopefully something comforting. "Whether you're desperate or not, you can keep talking to me. I have nothing more worthwhile to do in this cell besides eat and sleep, the latter of which is only granted to me on rare occasions. To be completely honest, Zelda, I have nothing else besides an eventual release from prison to look forward to if you decide not to visit me." What in Hyrule had come over him? Since when was he the "nice guy"?

Zelda lifted her head out of her hands in gradual awe. He expression was indescribable, indiscernible. "Do you truly mean that, Cain? Those might be the kindest words you have ever spoken to me."

He scoffed, "Yes, of course I meant it."

Contrary to common belief, he did not enjoy lying. If there was a need to lie, say, to save himself from suspicion, then he would most certainly lie. But when there was no danger in telling the truth, he would rather just say how he really felt – when he even decided to speak on such matters as his feelings at all. He would rather humiliate the person asking or change the subject than to reveal his own thoughts. It was just his way, how he had always been.

If Cain had opened up in this moment – even just a crack – to Zelda, he might have to spend the next few hours contemplating what the princess REALLY meant to him.

Or he could let the feeling hang low beneath every other thought, unrecognized until he was forced to confront it.

Zelda seemed shocked, but soon collected herself. She smiled down at her neat, folded hands, then at him. "Perhaps I was wrong about you. I believe that we can be great friends. Unlikely friends, but great ones." The blue-eyed girl bid him a good night, then headed up the stairs to the main floor of the castle, and eventually up to her chambers where sleep would embrace her in its comfortable arms.

Cain was not so fortunate as to receive such a phenomenon as slumber.

AN: Heehee, I left this one on a bit of a cliffhanger. I hope you guys are enjoying this story! I've been keeping track of the traffic this one is getting and it's a fair amount. Maybe because I'm actually posting regularly for once xD Anyway, what do you think of where this is going so far? I can tell you for sure that the next chapter is really important so stay tuned!

Have wonderful lives everyone~


	6. Chapter 6: Conversion

Chapter 6: Conversion

"Come to me…"

A whisper, a vapor, unheard by human ears but rather felt by the mind. Cain covered his ears anyway as if to block it out, erecting mental barriers to keep the storm at bay. It never worked well enough.

"Come… Shadow born in the depths of the waters, obey my will…"

A moan in the darkness dismissed by the guards. Prisoners often slept fitfully, but Cain wasn't sleeping.

"Why do you resist your benefactor? I could free you… I could let you unleash your wrath on them all…"

"Stop, stop, stop it!" His speech was hushed and rapid. While he preferred to think of his mind as strong in the face of opposition or oppression, this proved to be untrue when he needed it the most. Ganon's spirit still trickled its way in, his evil hatred sinking into every crevice of his brain in attempts to use him as a new reincarnation. He had always been invading his mind and ordering him around, but for once he'd had enough of this pain.

"I'm nothing more than a tool to you." He thought towards the spirit. "Any promises that you make me can be broken as easily as a blade of grass in Hyrule Field. Why should I trust you?"

The spirit's presence seemed to halt its advance for just a moment. "Trust is not the question, I only need your weak compliance. Surrender… what have you to lose?" Even Ganon had to comply to the rules of possession: the body must give consent, lest it rebel even as the spirit inhabits it.

Cain pondered the question even while cowering in the corner of his cell. What DID he have to lose? He had no possessions, no true home. There was nothing to hope for except an eventual release, and even that was uncertain. There was nothing else for him in this damned castle, so what-?

"Her. I'll lose her. She's all I have, and even that I'm not sure of. She's all I have." The thought was spoken from the piece of rotten heart he had left to care with, deep within him, in a way he could not deny the feeling's presence. Whatever she meant to him, it was SOMETHING. That was all he could handle right now.

"A naïve princess is the cause of your resistance?" Ganon's ominous laughter boomed in his head like thunder, sending chills up Cain's spine. "What a petty creature you've become! You have succumbed to human emotions as if you are one of them! Allow me to remind you of what you are in the event that you have forgotten: you are an evil-born, bred for fighting and hatred, filled with malice towards humanity, a filthy creature of darkness whose only goal is chaos. THAT is what you are and forever will be! SUBMIT, SURRENDER, OR PAY!" The hateful spirit no longer whispered, he screamed in Dark's head without ceasing. "Look at yourself and how pathetic you are! You can act on your own power no longer!"

Ganon pulled his perspective out from first person into third using elementary magic. While he could not fully possess him, Ganon was able to use bits of energy from Cain's body without consent and the tiring effects where duly noted.

His ashen skin was the lightest part of his whole body. His black tunic was torn in many places and quite filthy. Any healthy physicality he had gained in his days of wandering Hyrule was now gone and he had regained a skinny, lanky appearance. Deep red eyes pierced the darkness, frightened and helpless. Dark circles hung under his eyes, making them appear sunken. Black hair grew in thick uncontrollable locks around his face. He hated some things about this form but… that didn't mean he was willing to give it up to someone else as a sacrifice.

"I am sorry Ganon, King of Evil… But I enjoy being myself too much to become anything else."

He could almost hear the spirit seething with fury. "Then… pay."

There was a minute of silence.

It shattered as his perspective wheeled back into first person and his brain felt like it was being shoved through the narrow end of a pipe. His lungs compressed and breathing became difficult. Cain cried out once then stopped himself, concealing the rest of his quiet sobs behind hands and fingers and knees. He clung to simple thoughts like her smile, her laugh, her proper speech. He pondered the things he knew about her and the things he wished he knew. He admired the way she treated him like a person rather than the monster that he was. He wondered at the way she felt about life. The way she felt about him. The way he felt about her.

Cain did not enjoy lying, especially when it came to himself.

But in all of this agony, he couldn't hope to understand these emotions just yet. He just needed to get through the night, whatever it took.

AN: Hi! This is a darker chapter with a little more angst but I THINK you guys can handle it if you liked chapter 4. I told you this was an important chapter and I didn't disappoint, did I? I deliver on my word, people. I'm an honest woman.

Okay, back to business. Was everything understandable in this chapter? On some of the descriptions, I wasn't sure if they came across clearly. Let me know if something is confusing and I'll see what I can do. As long as you're not posting a review as anonymous, I'll just reply to explain the thing to you.

Thanks a bunch to those who are following this little tale, I hope you all have wonderful lives~


	7. Chapter 7: Prophecy

Chapter 7: Prophecy

He stood before her in an image as clear as day, except for his face. One does not see faces very clearly in dreams. A thing she knew for certain was that he was smiling. Zelda wished she could really look at that smile, considering the scarcity of its occurrence. But alas, she was never one to obtain a significant amount of lucidity in her dreams. Her shadow friend began to speak in that warbled kind of speech in which you know what they are saying and your dream-self responds accordingly but you do not actually hear their physical voice. They seemed to be having a meaningless conversation, with Zelda tuning in and out of first person point of view.

In a flash, Cain's image began to disfigure and swirl out of focus, the skies opened wide their storehouses of rain, and he became smaller and further away. Zelda ran in bare feet after him across the Castle Town drawbridge and stopped where dirt path met grass.

A scream rang out in the vast Hyrule Field, agonizing and regretful, that trailed off into deep, groaning sobs not simply heard, but felt by the heart. She wished to help but could not reach him, though she stretched out her hand in vain toward his dark, lonely, far out silhouette.

As the rain trickled down her cheeks, a word echoed as clear as crystal:

"Helpless."

Zelda clung to her silken sheets in fright, crying out in distress.

"My lady?" Impa rushed to her bedside with remarkable speed, as expected of her.

The princess tried to wave her off. "I am quite alright, Impa, just a mere nightmare."

Her maiden looked concerned. "Do you think it was another prophetic dream? What did you see, my mistress?" Zelda should have known that Impa would not go gently when her princess was in distress.

"I-I do not know…" She covered her face as tears ran down her cheeks, and felt herself being pulled into the loving embrace of her handmaiden.

Once she had recollected herself, Impa let her go. Her eyes asked the questions for her. Zelda described the dream in as much detail as she could remember.

"Why Cain? What is going on with him that I do not understand? What kind of pain is he enduring in silence?" She thought aloud.

"I cannot begin to know, my mistress… Though I have guesses, I will not speak of them until they can be proven. I have not enough evidence to justify these possibilities." Impa's words were always wisest. "Although I should caution you, my lady; that shadow boy could be trouble. I am not sure you should really invest in him. Though I suppose, if anyone could change him, it would be you."

"I am sure that somewhere inside him, there is goodness. And I am willing to find that goodness and nurture it."

Zelda could not allow him to suffer alone. But even if he would not allow her to lend her aid, she had faith that he was strong enough to overcome it. He could overcome it and become a better person for it. She could SEE it.

Somewhere inside of him, where he refused to let the light shine, there was goodwill and the ability to love.

Perhaps that was why she cared so much for his well-being. Why she yearned for his presence just for mere useless conversations. Why her heart fluttered when he smiled that miniscule, cynical, lopsided grin and laughed that snorting, detached, silly chortle. Why those red eyes captured her attention every time they were unveiled from behind the curtain of black hair.

Zelda looked at her trusted handmaiden in dead seriousness and nearly whispered, "You know Impa, in some strange sense of the word… I love him." The boy whom she imprisoned, befriended, then named; the only his kind. Though, she was not sure if he would ever feel the same.

AN: Sorry it's been a few days guys! Life happened all over the place. But here's another chapter for you. I have another one typed up and ready to go so hopefully I can do that tomorrow. Anyway, what do you think the dream means? Leave a review of your thoughts! I won't confirm or deny anything, but I will reply if I can :)

Have wonderful lives everyone~~~~


	8. Chapter 8: Empty Air

Cain stood to meet her today. It was a noisy ordeal because of the shackles and a painful one because he'd been curled up on the floor all night, but still he stood. In his own way, he tried to show some respect.

"Here you are again. We really must stop meeting like this." He hid his grimace of pain with a grin and leaned a shoulder against the prison bars, trying for nonchalant.

Zelda just laughed in that sparkling way of hers. "I dare say that you are beginning to enjoy my visits, my shadow friend. Is that speculation too absurd?"

He turned to lean his back against the cold metal, replying half to himself and half to her, "You're getting warmer."

Her smile was too bright for him. Cain could almost feel its warmth with his back turned.

"What time is it now? Tell me how Hyrule appears today."

The blue-eyed princess took a moment to gather her thoughts, then replied as if she'd taken great care to choose each word. "Well, the sun has already come up. For once, I was able to visit you during morning's light rather than in nocturnal shade. Hyruleans in Castle Town are bustling about their stores, busying themselves with all the odds and ends like sweeping and restocking. My coronation is upon us, within the week actually, and thus the townspeople are beginning to make preparations for that. The grass in Hyrule Field seems to be just as green as the day before, and Death Mountain looms in the distance, though no longer a threat to us. All is well."

He allowed himself a small smile. "I never thought that I'd miss the outside world. But after being stuck here for a while, I long to breathe a different air. Do you understand that?"

"Perhaps. I am nowhere near to your circumstances, but I can sympathize." Zelda let her gaze drift down to her feet.

The silence became awkward for a bit. But Cain had nothing to say.

"Why won't you face me? This is the first time you've physically turned your back to me." She wondered aloud.

He didn't want her to see the tear streaks that were remains of the night's torture, but he didn't want to refuse her either.

Cain faced the princess. "I apologize. I guess I don't have very good manners, do I?"

She only looked on him with concern and pity, sighing. "Why must your eyes be so bloodshot? When do you even sleep, Cain?"

"I'm not sure if I slept at all last night. I don't think I've slept in about a week, give or take. This behavior is quite normal for me, I promise. Do remember that I'm not quite human, so can last for months without sleep, food, and water." He tried to explain himself but wondered if she already knew.

"Even so, it is probably best if you get some more rest. Please try, will you?" Zelda's worry seemed genuine.

"I suppose it can't hurt." Cain wasn't sure how else to answer.

In the silence, the princess took a few steps closer to the bars, a new occurrence, and bent down to see his face. Dark had the urge to hide.

"My dear shadow… what are those streaks on your face? You looked pained. Do tell me what is wrong." Her voice was soft like a gentle wind before rain. Why must she care so much?

He took a step back and laughed a little. "Come now princess, you don't have to worry. My face has been filthy for months now, that's what happens when you are stuck in a concrete hole like this." To make her stress decrease was all he really wanted.

Zelda refrained from replying, straightened up and rested her fingers on the bars, her eyes in dazed reverie towards the floor.

He rubbed his forearm to give his hand something to do. Why couldn't he think of worthwhile things to say anymore? She rendered him speechless without lifting a delicate finger. All his unsaid words choked him so he could barely even breathe, until he gazed upon her face and decided breath was overrated anyway. He wished he could find some way to thank her, to tell her how he felt, to tell her what truly transpired last night.

But he couldn't.

"Well, I bid you a good day. I must be off before my work piles too high. I shall visit as soon as I can, my dear friend." That smile would forever blind him.

"Goodbye."

She had already turned her back and started walking away, but he released his forearm and reached out to her. Cain wasn't sure what he was hoping his hand would find, but it found nothing but air and that saddened him.

Perhaps he should sleep until she came back.

AN: Fresh plate of feels, just for you! COME GET EM WHILE THEY'RE HOT

Anyway, hope you all are enjoying this little story of mine. I'm excited to keep posting! I don't know what I'll do when I'm done with this though. I don't really have any other fanfictions in the works that I think are worth sharing xD Most of them are pretty cringey. I mean, just browse through the rest of the stories I've submitted with this account, and multiply their cringe levels by 10. This is literally the only good fanfiction I've ever made xD

Leave a review if you have any critiques, predictions, or just want to say hi! I'll reply if I can :)


	9. Chapter 9: The Story

Chapter 9: The Story

"Your Majesty, please heed my words. You are a daughter of royalty who is soon to be crowned queen. Do you really have time to waste on this – "

Zelda pivoted on her heel and faced her guard with abrupt coolness. "If you truly respect me as an authority, then do respect my choices, Harold. I have my reasons, reasons that I need not expound upon to you." With that, she continued her brisk walk down the hallway. Her guard followed suit in a discombobulated stupor.

She entered the study where her ornate wooden desk and its cushioned chair sat among rows and rows of shelves, every one of them filled with books and scrolls. The desk faced a large bay window overlooking the Market Square. The dawn's sunshine was welcome here among the chronicles and fiction, poetry and prose, from which Zelda had been tutored. She allowed herself small pride in this regard, though as royalty, it was expected of her. Papers to study and approve were stacked on the tabletop, awaiting her attention and ink stroke. Zelda dismissed her guard to stand outside the door, and with an audible sigh she collapsed into the chair and stared for a minute at the pile of documents.

"I supposed I must resign to my fate." The princess muttered. She took up her quill and began. All the while, she wondered how her shadow friend fared down in his cell, in the dungeon she placed him in. He was alone; they had not taken prisoners in a long time. The guards were afraid of him, and so reluctant to even bring him his meager meals. They guarded him from afar, usually from the bottom of the stairs that led up to the castle or sometimes even just at the top of those very steps. Zelda could not comprehend how he stood it, how he was still sane. Perhaps he was not and was an excellent actor. She worried for him, even as these papers that she was studying demanded that she worry about every other affair instead.

o.o.o.o.o

Days went by, and Zelda was unable to visit. He managed to count them: six days, he went without her presence, presumably because of the coronation that she had mentioned. When was this crowning, he wondered? Why, it was today, replied the guard who brought him his "breakfast" this morning. Meals were his only means of telling what time of day it was. He got as much information out of this guard as possible.

The coronation would start with a long procession through major areas of Hyrule. That would begin late morning. The actual crowning occurred on a stage erected by the people in the middle of Hyrule Field, on one of its many rolling hills. This allowed people to gather for the event. The princess would be crowned in the late afternoon. Festivities would go on till morning's light all over the land, then a day of rest would be allowed before the official council meetings and such began with the new queen.

Cain took mental notes and actually found enough empathy to thank the guard for telling him this. After all, any break in the routine was welcome. He just looked confused and took his empty tray with a stupefied expression. Cain did not, however, resist the urge to attack the guard with a humiliating jest concerning said confusion.

In those six days, he tried to sleep, but each bout of slumber was shallow. He would rest for a couple of hours, but then would awake from frightening dreams of Ganon and all his hatred. He dared not speak of the, much less think about them. There were times when he thought that perhaps reality was like the Water Temple: the water choking him, the sand sifting through his fingers without showing him any meaning, the illusory landscape tricking his mind by challenging his definition of "real". But when all sanity seemed lost, he had one shred of hop that he clung to with fervent desparity.

Zelda.

The princess, the girl who named him.

She was, beyond a drop of exaggeration, all he had left to hang on to, and without that firm grip on her image he would fall into the abyss of despair.

He was having trouble seeing her these days. Only six had passed, and yet in that time, it became more difficult to recall what she looked like, what she sounded like. Endless nightmares clouded his mind's eye instead. He longed to fully remember; he didn't know how much longer he could hold on.

But he knew she must not understand this feeling. He had a hard time explaining it to himself, thus how could he explain it to her? Is this what love means: to live for another person rather than yourself as if they were your lifeblood? If so, then Cain was more deeply in love than he ever though his heart was capable of being. He was born into the world to do evil things in secret, be the downfall of many but discovered by none. He was created to lie, cheat, steal, wound, and kill. He had believed, for as long as he remembered breathing, that his purpose in this world was to hate, and that hate was driven by fear of his master. That hate gave him incredible power, and drove him to do terrible things. It was his entire mindset; his whole outlook on the world was shaped by a hatred for it.

But then he SAW the world. He saw a child cry for its mother. He saw a flower bloom in the desert. He saw the sun rise and set. He watched the moon and stars for a time. And slowly, slowly, his heart started melting, if only but a little.

When Zelda began to show him compassion, he finally understood why humans desired to be around each other, why they were so desperate to form relationships. She only furthered his growth by exposing him to feelings he had never felt. He supposed that he depended on her to feed him revolutionizing knowledge of the world he'd only learned about through the lens of hate. A little over half a year had gone by, and all that time, he had her voice, her intelligence, her friendship to look forward to in the day.

So even these few days without her were jarring. He didn't realize how much he really relied on her until she wasn't there to hold him together. Without something to look forward to, to cling to, the mind just doesn't want to function anymore. As time repeats itself in its mundane routine without any ultimate (or even immediate) purpose, the mind becomes reluctant.

Without her, insanity was imminent.

Without her, he was empty.

AN: I'm so sorry everyone! I fully intended to post another chapter days ago, but lots of life happened all over the place. So I tried to make this one a little longer for you guys just in case it ends up being a while before the next chapter comes out. I promise I'm going to complete the story, you have my word!

How do you guys feel about the story so far? Feel free to share your thoughts :) Have wonderful lives, I'll try to post soon~


	10. Chapter 10: Underneath

Chapter 10: Underneath

The noon sun shone down upon the field, warming the thousands that were crowded here. The brilliance of all the colors about her was breathtaking. She drank it in whilst she was able.

Zelda had been fitted into a splendid pink and gold themed gown, complete with a few accessories to match. Her seamstresses described the theme of the dress as "liquid summer". Thin, gold-colored straps held the dress up, leaving her shoulders bare. The top section of the dress stretched tight across her chest. The material shimmered in the sunlight, filled with intricate curling designs in pink. At her ribcage was fastened a thin gold belt, then the gown flared out into layers of fabric that reached her ankles. The layers were all golden with barely visible pink hemming. Her seamstress had hemmed the gown just above her feet to allow ease of movement without stepping on the dress. Above her elbows but below her shoulders were gold bracelets with long, drooping sleeves of sheer fabric raining down, shortened at one end to allow her use of her hands but excess fabric reaching past her knees. The color of these sleeves was a blushing cerise. On her feet were simple shoes that covered her toes and heels in pale pink.

They had taken her hip-length hair and twisted it into a loose bun atop her head, letting some strands come down around her face and adding some gold pins to hold it in place. They chose earrings that were not too large, but gold and shaped like the sun. Her only neck adornment was a mere gold choker with a tiny sun ornament in its center. To her face they had added little, only painting her lips a glistening pink.

Moments before, she had sat inside a closed wagon near the podium. Her servants picked at her hair and clothes, bustling about to make everything just so. Now she stood before her subjects, soon to be officially crowned the Queen of Hyrule. All of those people gazed upon her in reverence. The queen, her mother, walked in her slow but steady pace with the help of a sage who would perform the ritual and make the speech. Her mother had been granted the honor of placing the diadem on her daughter's head. Zelda had no need or desire to listen to the sage's prepared words and prayers to Din, Farore, and Nayru. She knew it by heart, and knew how to conduct herself accordingly.

Again she wondered how her shadow friend fared. Oh how she missed him so! Cain was the only person with whom she was free to be herself. His presence was somehow liberating, a haven from the claustrophobic schedules she was subject to. The shadow did not see her as everyone else did: he first saw her as a person, then a princess. Even in these light, airy clothes that were a gracious break from her usual stuffy attire, she longed to kick off her shoes, leap off this stage, and run through Hyrule Field to someplace else. Perhaps Lake Hylia to feel the waves on her toes. Perhaps Kokiri Forest to hear the fairies whisper. Or perhaps to the Zora Domain to swim with the fish. With Cain, she felt like that: free. Zelda could not imagine a life without his friendship at all. Who would be her friend if not this prisoner? Who would understand her as a person and disregard her royal status for a change? Who would challenge her rather than blindly agree with all her statements? Who would talk to her like he did, with his dark humor and tiny moments of caring? Who would fill her with such joy simply by laughing?

Without him, her cage locked shut.

Without him, she was empty.

"This crown is indeed simple, but is symbolic of…" The sage rolled on, nearing the end. Zelda was eager to be done.

A servant brought with care the cushion holding the crown to her mother's hands. The crown was rather small, about the length from one's pinkie to one's thumb, but the female rulers were never fitted with large headpieces. It was a triangle with sides that curved inward up to the tip. The middle of the triangle was not filled with gold, but hanging from the tip of the tiara inside the shape was a tear-shaped ruby. The base of the triangle was curved also and made with comb-teeth to settle in her hair like a decorative comb.

Zelda bowed her head and clasped her hands. The queen placed the diadem in her hair, making sure it was secure before motioning her to rise.

The people cheered, clapped, and chanted. Zelda smiled, her happiness to have the opportunity to lead such a beautiful country genuine. But feelings of claustrophobia and stress lingered in her mind, causing her smiles and waves to feel forced. She would have to endure long hours of festivities, but not if she could help it. Of course she wanted to visit with her subjects; she had always thought friendly intimacy to be a wise virtue of any monarch. But she did NOT wish the visit with them into the wee hours of the morning. She was led off the podium and ushered into the closed wagon yet again, where her mother briefed her on the proper conduct during these parties. They had a schedule of where they would visit throughout the rest of the day, ending in Castle Town.

Somewhere behind the comprehension of these plans and procedures, a silent plea echoed in Zelda's brain toward her beloved shadow: "Free me."

AN: HEllo hello hello! I know it's been a while again, I'm sorry. I got busier - Here's another chapter for you. Sorry for the lengthy descriptions, I just had some very vivid images in my head and I wanted to try and show them to you.

Also, I don't know if I've said this before, but if you have any criticism for my writing, feel free to let me know. I'll appreciate any thoughts you feel like sharing with me ^-^


	11. Chapter 11: At Long Last

Chapter 11: At Long Last 

The nightmares became worse every time he went to sleep. In the span of a day, he had already dozed off a handful of times in attempt to escape himself. Each time, he awoke sitting up, screaming, or in a cold sweat. Sometimes Ganon would taunt him with hellish images of a tortured or murdered Zelda, discovering a weakness in Cain that he enjoyed exploiting to no end. From these he often responded with uncontrollable tears, ashamed of this weakness and at the same time proud of it. Cain did his best from then on to stay awake, but there was nothing to do to keep him alert. He tried many different activities that were all temporary seals on his boredom: staring at the walls, counting the cracks in them, poking at insects that lived in his cell, scratching sketches in the floor and walls with a fragment of the stone floor that he'd found laying around, and more. The latter passed the most time due to how long the act of engraving took by hand.

Cain was in the process of creating an image of Hyrule Field as he remembered it when he heard rapid footfalls nearby. Soft, padding footfalls which stopped near the entrance to the descending stairs. They must be talking to the guard or something of the like.

Zelda burst into view from the right, skidding to a halt in her bare feet before his cell. Her hair was pulled out of its pins, flowing in reckless abandon, and her dress shimmered the color of a summer sunset.

The rock he was holding dropped like his heart. He couldn't breathe. Cain stumbled to the bars and gripped them till his knuckles paled.

"Zelda?" His voice was hoarse from the screaming and crying.

"Cain? Are you alright? Have you had sufficient slumber like I requested of you?" Her voice sounded breathless. Of course, she was concerned about him first. Typical of the girl, absolutely typical of her to melt his heart even further.

He couldn't even speak; she both awed and relieved him in this moment. His body shook as tears of joy and relief left countless streaks on his face, feeling as if he could breathe again. With his forehead to the cold metal bar, he managed to say,

"You're killing me…"

"Cain, I… I don't believe I have ever seen you display such emotion. Please tell me what is wrong, I want to help." Zelda looked concerned, as she should be. He couldn't have been fully sane by this point if he was actually crying in front of another person.

He could only sigh and attempt to pull himself together. A year ago, if someone had asked him if he would ever confess his feelings and secrets to another human being, he would have answered with a vehement no. But now things were different.

"I can't sleep anymore. Ganon's hateful spirit has threatened to possess me and tortures my mind almost constantly, although he backs off when you're around. The only thing I can hold onto and hope for is you, Zelda. You don't know how many times holding onto the thought of you has saved me from succumbing to him. You are my only assured reality. And because of this and everything else that you are… I… love… you." The foreign words were difficult to form, so he said them again. "I love you. Despite the monster that I am, I love you." Once he became more familiar with the phrase, the more he wanted to say it. They encompassed everything he felt in a neat package of three small words, and yet he knew he would never be able to say them enough. "I could praise you on everything I love you for, but I've said more than enough already." He concluded and awaited her response with head bowed and expectations low.

o.o.o.o.o.o

When Cain began to cry, she knew that something was amiss. The only emotions he had displayed to her thus far were disgust, brief happiness, and cynicism. Each of those were not very animated, only mere things like a little snort or a grin. But these genuine tears almost scared her.

After he explained himself, he hung his head as if defeated in battle. Shouldn't he had been proud of how he felt? Perhaps he was ashamed to feel it.

In either case, Zelda had not been the least bit prepared to have her feelings reciprocated.

"I… I don't know what to say, Cain. Although, perhaps now would be an opportune time to say that the emotion is mutual…" She stepped forward, wrapped her hand around his that clenched the bar so tight, and leaned her forehead against the same bar as he.

This was the closest they had ever been.

Zelda whispered her confession without fear: "I love you too."

o.o.o.o.o

When she touched his hand, it was like a fragment of his soul molded back into place. Her gentle whisper filled him with joy he had never felt before in his long, dreary existence. He wanted to hold her before she slipped away, before he lost something he could never hope to replace. But still behind those bars he stood, unable to do anything.

Zelda let go and carefully sat on the floor, with Cain following suit on his side. They held hands as she told of her feelings, and that some time ago she had realized them. She told him that he made her feel "free", which was so beautifully ironic to him. The prisoner freed the princess.

"I must say that this is so odd to me: that we felt the same way about each other and said nothing." He paused for a moment, his brow furrowing. "How can I, of all people, free you? How can I even be allowed to touch your hand like this when I'm… so filthy compared to you?"

Cain started to pull his hand away but Zelda secured it, not in a harsh way, but out of affection.

"You have committed terrible crimes, and you were once a willing pawn of the most evil being ever to exist. But all of those sins are in the past tense, therefore it does not matter to me. You have the same capability as every other being to love and do good deeds, I have always told you so. Now you have proven that yourself!" She smiled and it still blinded him, but he did his best for the first time to smile back.

"I suppose I have."

There was a comfortable silence between them for a time.

"If I stayed through night, like this… would that be alright? We do not even have to speak, I am happy with your presence alone." Zelda inquired of him, her deep blue eyes shining portals to freedom.

"Why is that even a question? Your ignorance astounds even me." Cain resorted to the usual sarcasm with a miniscule grin. He almost regretted it until she smiled a little smile that showed him she understood this second language he spoke.

"That answer shall suffice as affirmative." Zelda adjusted herself to lean her back against the bars, and he adjusted likewise so they sat back-to-back, still holding hands. Cain was afraid to let go, as if to do so would make all of this disappear. His reality would slip through his fingers like sand again, and the mind torture would continue. He needed this princess – queen, now – more than he ever though he would rely on anyone.

With her here, he could get some rest. Even Ganon seemed blinded by her presence. Cain listened to her breathing and his heart beating for the first time, felt the warmth of her hand in his. He only wished he could offer her a blanket or something. The floor wasn't the cleanest, he wondered if she cared about her dress much…

His thoughts drifted off into nothingness and nonsense, then sleep enveloped him in its downy embrace for the first time in his life.

o.o.o.o.o

Impa set out to gather the new queen. Harold and the other guards were clueless, thinking she had run off to bed like a good girl, but the handmaiden knew exactly where Zelda was most likely located.

Tiny, pink, slip-on shoes looked as if they were thrown haphazardly on the carpeted floor just before the descent to the dungeon. The door stood cracked, as if someone had not bothered to latch it properly.

Indeed, Impa's hunch had been correct.

She took a deep breath and descended in silence. The guardian was met at the bottom of the twisting stairs by the strangest sight she had seen in all her years. Princess – Queen – Zelda sat on the floor of the grimy prison propped up against the bars and the boy's back, sound asleep with an expression of dreamy bliss. The lone prisoner occupying this prison was seated likewise, leaning on the bars and the girl. His hand extended out to hers and their fingers looked as if they were made to intertwine. Dark Link looked at peace as well, an odd look for someone whom she had only ever seen scowling.

"Goddesses help us…" Impa sighed to herself. She turned and trekked back up the steps and stood by the door, awaiting the morning. She would be there when the queen awoke, and that was how it should be. The Sheikah would not be the one to give her the 3rd degree for this, and no one else would find out if she could help it. Impa was not about to berate Zelda for being in love, but she doubted anyone else could read the signs as well as she could.

AN: Hey everyone! This chapter ended up being super long because there just wasn't a good way to break it up. So that might be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on who you are xD Anyway, thank you to the people who gave positive reviews! I couldn't directly reply because you're guests to the site but I'm happy you're enjoying my little story :)

From this point on, there are two endings you can choose from: the happy ending and the sad ending. I'll label them accordingly. When I was writing this, I WAS just going to stick with the sad ending since I love me some drama, but... I thought I would be nice and give you guys the choice ^-^ Those should be coming out soon! I'll try to post them at the same time so you have something to read if you don't like one or the other. The happy ending is longer than the sad ending so it might take a couple chapters to post.

Have a wonderful day! You look lovely~


	12. Chapter 12: Sad Ending

Chapter 12: Sad Ending

She was beautiful.

Cain could think of neither a sunset nor a sunrise more beautiful than her. Not that he had seen very many in his life, but that didn't matter now.

Her natural beauty was tainted with sorrow, stained by the thousands of tears she cried. How he wanted to wipe them away and lock them up, forbid them from running down her face ever again. How he wanted to offer her some sort of comfort.

But he couldn't.

He had nothing to give, and she was never his.

"Nameless shadow, dark being of evil, you have been charged with unlawful use of magic, sabotage, murder, and countless other crimes. You have bewitched our queen and wreaked havoc throughout the land. The only fitting punishment for a despicable creature such as you is death."

The executioner was interrupted by a sob.

"He has a name! You cannot do this, let him go!" Impa held Queen Zelda back from running up to where Cain was poised to die of decapitation.

"You truly are despicable for loving such filth. She is beneath you, all of them are. Succumb to me, and I will free you." Ganondorf whispered in his brain, trying just as hard as ever to break his will lest he lose his one potential vessel.

Cain grimaced and shook his head with vigor as if to shake the King of Evil out of it. "No, I don't need you! I deserve this."

He dared not look at the queen. Hearing her cries was torture enough.

He had to meet her eyes one last time though. Zelda's face was the most horrible sight he had ever witnessed. Her sorrow, her agony, it was just as much his as it was hers. It all hit him like the world itself was dropped on his shoulders: his inescapable fate.

Cain collapsed to his knees as the tears flowed. The guards dragged him to the wood block, where he laid his neck.

As those blue eyes tore into his soul searching for a reason, inquiring of fate's cruelty, he mouthed those simple words to her again.

"I love you."

Could she feel his heart beating like a startled bird? Could she feel it bleeding for her, longing for her? Were those three little words really enough to say everything he wished he could say?

She merely nodded and with a heart-wrenching sob, turned into Impa's embrace.

"Any last words, you filthy scoundrel?"

Cain thought for a moment before responding.

"I'm… sorry."

The executioner seemed a little surprised, but gave a cynical chuckle anyway. "Your simple apology is not enough to cover your sins, but I will give you credit for putting in the effort."

The axe rose high above his head, dragging with it suspense.

Down it crashed as a pendulum of fate.

o.o.o.o.o

Silence.

The unspoken words echoed in her head until she thought she'd go insane. Dark whispers.

It was all gone, everything she thought was meant to be. How could she have been so naïve?

It was wrong, all wrong, and this was a nightmare. Just like the very nightmare she'd had not so long ago. She would wake soon, in a cold sweat and shaken but otherwise well.

Cain's black blood and severed head on the podium begged to differ.

Those lips that tremblingly said, "I love you," moments before were stone cold and lifeless; those eyes she'd grown addicted to were glassy and strange. Twisted, demented reality, where everything was horribly, unbearably wrong. The horror of it was too much. Her heart pounded on the door of hysteria and is was hospitably welcomed.

She couldn't even ask why everything went black.

She couldn't even breathe because she was screaming.

This was too real.

*ThE eNd… maybe?*

AN: I'm baaaack~ I know you missed meeeee

LOL anyway, here's the sad ending I promised. As long as everything works out, the first section of the happy ending will be posted at the same time, so you can chose one or the other.

I had some major inspiration while I was typing this up to make sequel books based on the different endings! What do you guys think? Feel free to let me know your thoughts :)


	13. Chapter 13a: Happy Ending Part 1

Chapter 13: Happy Ending

Cain awoke to find Zelda still leaning against him, fast asleep. He sighed and let her be, enjoying the closeness while it lasted. What would he do when she left? How would he breathe? He supposed he could just hold his breath until he could see her again. The only air worth breathing was the air he shared with her.

His mind began to drift again as his body relaxed. Perhaps he was overdue for another bout of pure slumber. In the stone cold prison leaning against demanding metal bars, he had found the best sleep he has ever gotten in his life, filled with beautiful dreams, all thanks to her.

He wondered what Zelda dreamed about. If she ever had nightmares. Cain would never wish for her to have them. Only sweet dreams. Zelda's profile that he could see from his side of the bars was the most blissful, peaceful expression he'd ever beheld. Her hair mingled with his and she smelled like some flower he had smelled before, though he couldn't recall the name. He did recall it being her favorite though.

Sleep beckoned him and he sighed again, weary eyes shutting out the world.

o.o.o.o.o

Zelda longed to linger. Unchain him, pull back the bars, and take him from this place. But here he had to stay. Here in this prison, where she had locked him in the first place so many sunsets ago. Someday he would be able to leave. Perhaps his sentence would be lifted eventually, by her mother's grace.

She bolted upright, gripping his hand so tight that it must have been painful. His eyes shot open as he turned to her.

"Cain! I've had a revelation!"

"Please refrain from telling me because I am a psychic mind-reader." He grinned in that crooked way, unveiling the sarcasm.

"I could free you now!" Zelda settled on her knees and grasped both his hands in hers, gazing into his eyes with eagerness. "Now that I am queen, I could lift your sentence and pardon you of your crimes. Of course, the council will have to agree… That will require the work of a particularly persuasive wordsman, but I believe that it can be done. I will begin working towards this worthy goal tomorrow, when the council meetings begin." Zelda smiled and felt the happiest she had ever felt in her life.

"What will I do after being released though? That is the true question, Zelda. I can't be with you, no one would allow it. And without you… I don't know what I'd do, where I'd go." He gazed heavily at their hands.

"Cain, my dear shadow, we will be together. I just know it. Perhaps not in the way we would like, but together nonetheless. We will find a way."

Zelda cupped his cheek with her hand and he leaned into her touch, covering it with his own hand. His face felt covered in grime from inability to wash and was smeared with tear-streaks. Her dress was certainly soiled from laying on the prison floor, but she no longer cared. It was all for him, therefore it was worth it.

AN: I'm baaaaaack guys~ Here's the first part of the happy ending, as promised. There are a couple more sections to this ending. If everything works out, the sad ending will post at the same time so you have options. That ending is only one chapter.

Also, I had some major inspiration while typing these up to make some sequel books based on the different endings! What do you all think? Feel free to let me know :)


	14. Chapter 13b: Happy Ending Part 2

Chapter 13b: Happy Ending

Gasps surrounded the queen in the meeting hall as she stood proud in a traditional purple gown, accompanied by expressions of disgust. An explosion of Your Highness', Your Majesty's, and Your Grace's followed suit. Still Zelda poised herself with firm elegance. Her voice would be heard and her proposition accepted.

At her feet was her beloved shadow, shackled but showing due respect by bowing a deep, formal bow.

Zelda met his eyes with a smile and bid him rise.

"Confess your sins to the Council of Sages. Please be loud and clear."

He nodded.

o.o.o.o.o.o

Deep inhale.

Shaky exhale.

He began, stating each phrase in a blunt manner.

"I have stolen precious possessions, even from some of you. I have told lies to secure my safety. I have entered restricted areas without permission. I have used magic unlawfully. I have given and accepted bribes. I have been a hit man. I have injured many. I have tried to assassinate the former queen. I have killed." Cain paused and bowed his head, feeling the weight on his soul. "All of these sins I have actually committed, but I repent of them. I swear on my life and any other oath you give me that I will never commit them again. I lay them before you to be judged accordingly."

There in the agonizing, yet familiar silence, he waited with bated breath and a hanging head.

"I could get you out of this predicament, shadow. I could make them pay for their prejudice, their misunderstanding of you." Ganon hissed in his mind. He would never give up.

Cain tried in vain to shake the thought out of his brain. But this time of all times, the King was persistent.

"You need my help to fix this. You are aware of that. So let me take control. You will not even feel a pinch." His voice sounded like an oily grin.

All at once, he realized Ganon's plan all along: he wasn't merely complying with the rules of possession. He'd been weakening his body so he would be too weak to rebel, in which case he was no longer in need of consent.

Dark's awareness of his surroundings was fading. He snapped backwards to gaze at Zelda, pleading with those blue eyes to drown him.

"Ganon," he whispered, hoping she would understand.

o.o.o.o.o

Cain's whisper did not go unheard, and from the expression of anguish on his face the puzzle pieces began falling into place… What could she do but stand by with her heart a-race?

The hall echoed with his cries of pain. At once she recalled her nightmare, in which he howled in agony far away where she could not reach him. Was this its foreshadowing realized?

Zelda shook herself back to solid ground and rapidly mulled over the situation in attempts to take the appropriate action. The Council shouted amok, trying to find out what was going on whilst grimacing at this poor lad's blatant internal torture. Cain covered his head with his shackled wrists, forehead to the ground, fighting that unknown battle that he'd been fighting for Nayru knows how long. He shook like a startled, fragile bird, and the queen felt a few tears run down her face.

Perhaps it was time to address the confused Sages.

"Council! Please, lend me your ears. I know the cause of this terrible suffering."

Whispers circulated and she struggled to speak clearly over her shadow's cries. But she needed to be quick and convincing.

"This poor creature was magically created by Ganondorf, or Ganon, for the sole purpose of evil doing. He was trapped in the Water Temple until Ganon became ruler and freed him, after which he roamed the land and committed the terrible crimes that he now repents of, simply because that was his programming. But once he began to see the world for himself and this beautiful land, he began to question his hatred. He has told me many times in our talks that seeing everyone interact and meeting me helped him understand kindness and compassion. Ganon, however, did not approve of losing a potential vessel for reincarnation, and has pounded his mind relentlessly ever since. It seems that he is now trying to possess the shadow fully, but with all of your help, we may save him and banish Ganon's spirit as well! My dear Council, if you trust your new queen and do not wish to see this being go through such disturbing pain, then please assist me! I beg of your humanity!" Her tears flowed and pooled in the corners of her mouth, tasting salty and bitter.

All present stood as one. An elder spoke for all, "We believe in you and your wisdom, Your Grace. Let it be done."

o.o.o.o.o

Cain heard scuttling feet assemble around him. All of the people chanted strange words and there was a strange light. Ganon laughed above it all, the insane song playing over and over again without relenting. It was all of his nights alone in the cell times a million; his brain and his chest felt like they were being crushed by a boulder. Ganon seemed to be having trouble sliding into Cain's body and mind with a few smooth moments… and that trouble was Cain himself. Despite the agony, despite the torture, he refused to go down without a fight. He had to live and see Zelda's smile. He had to overcome this himself.

Ganon's laughter melted into a scream, pounding Cain into the ground with unnatural force. "YOU CANNOT DEFEAT ME!" He shouted his refrain of desperation with vigor, but it was not enough. Words of enchantment flowed through his ears; everyone around him was working. Queen Zelda's rose above it all, her beautiful, wonderful voice transcending even Cain's naïve fantasies.

In a moment, Ganon's voice rang out and faded into the spiritual, eternal abyss, and there was silence.

Cain's first thought was freedom. He was finally free. Should he cry or laugh, dance or sing? He wasn't skilled in either musical activity, but he could probably try. Instead, he just let himself breathe before standing once more.

Zelda's smiling eyes greeted him. The Sages took a few steps back to give due space.

The feeling just overwhelmed him, this entirely foreign feeling of having his mind all his own. Into the silence Cain started laughing, and Zelda giggled in return. He laughed longer than he should have until is somehow turned into sobs, wracking his wiry, filthy frame. She only looked sympathetic, and looked to a nearby guard, who came and unchained his hands and feet. This was the first time he had been unchained in months.

Cain gazed up at the queen, his only love, in some sort of strange reverence and appreciation. She gazed back at him and drew him into an embrace that he didn't know how to return. All he could repeat through broken tears was, "Thank you… All of you, thank you."

AN: Another section of the happy ending. I hope this has been satisfying so far :) Looks like these past couple chapters haven't gotten as many views though. If you like this story, tell your friends ^-^ As always, you can leave a review if you wanna.


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